This invention relates to a wheel chock for transporting a motorcycle, all terrain vehicle (ATV), or similar vehicles in a truck or trailer.
When transporting a motorcycle or other sport vehicle typically the vehicle will be tied down either in a pulled trailer, or in the bed of a pickup truck. The vehicle will be transported to where it is to be ridden, and then off loaded. It is necessary then to stabilize such a vehicle during transport and chocks have been used for this purpose for many years. A chock typically will be used to engage the front wheel of front wheels in the case of an ATV and typically the chock is bolted to the bed of the truck or trailer. In this case cargo capacity will be severally limited when the vehicle is not being transported by the presence of the chock on the truck or trailer bed surface.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,858,905 there is a described an adjustable wheel block which is normally recessed in the floor of a freight car. The block can be raised to engage the wheels of a heavy truck or similar vehicle being transported in the freight car. Spindles are provided on either end of the block which engage a recessed track against movement of the wheels.
Collapsible chocks are also known, and such a chock is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,829,738. This is a chock for airplane wheels and it is intended that the chock will be collapsed and stored within the airplane when not in use. The chock is raised to an upright position by a linkage and collapsed by pivoting this linkage out of the way.
Another type of collapsible chock is described in U.S. Pat. No. 703,280 which is a sidewalk mounted chock for a bicycle. When not in use the chock collapses into a recess in the sidewalk, and when it is in use it is manually raised and engages the front wheel. When the chock is in a raised position a stop at the base engages an end of the recess against further movement.
These collapsible chocks then are not intended to stabilize a motorcycle or similar vehicle as it is being transported with the incumbent vibration and bumps inherent in such travel.
Accordingly, there is a need for a recessed chock which can be mounted in the bed of a truck or trailer and which may be collapsed when not in use so that the vehicle can be used for unrestricted hauling of cargo.
The collapsible chock of this invention is normally stowed in a recess in the bed of a trailer or truck and is essentially flush mounted when closed. The chock, which is essentially a plate, is hingeably mounted at the forward end to the recess frame and a hole is provided in the opposite end for gripping to raise the chock. When the rear end of the plate is raised it pivots about the hinge mounting.
Parallel side support members are provided which are engaged at the upper end of the plate and the rear end of the recess frame and they are intended to both stop movement of the plate in the open position, and engage the tires of the vehicle mounted in the chock. The side support members then function to stabilize the vehicle laterally, and in the forward direction so that, for example, if the vehicle brakes sharply the motorcycle will not damage the chock as it is urged forward by inertia.
Accordingly it is an object of this invention to provide a recessed chock which is stabilized against movement of a vehicle engaged in the chock and which may be collapsed into a flush mounting with the floor of the trailer or truck bed when not in use.
It is another object of this invention to provide a collapsible chock which is structurally able to stabilize a motorcycle, ATV or similar vehicle as it is being transported in the bed of a truck or in a trailer.
It is another object of this invention to provide a collapsible chock which can be flush mounted with the bed of a trailer or truck as part of the floor thereof when not in use and easily raised by hand when a vehicle is being transported so that the front wheel engages the chock.